Letter: Quality care and services

Americans, the timing is right to get the hard work done and find out how much money it will take to get the veterans administration reorganized and run properly.

Sen. Richard Burr of North Carolina is at the top of a veterans committee that has worked hard to get the VA back into a strong position to operate more effectively. Whether Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs Sloan Gibson can implement the changes or not is being considered; but nothing is for certain at this time.

The usual amounts of money to accomplish this will be advanced shortly.

Earlier this month, President Obama signed into law a $16.3 billion measure for the VA. Prior to that, VA Deputy Secretary Sloan said that it will take at least $17.6 billion to hire 10,000 doctors and nurses, among other health care costs. The Senate also had passed a reform bill for $35 billion over the next three years. And leaders of 16 major organizations had sent a letter to Congress urging approval of billions for the VA.

Veterans of Foreign Wars, Disabled American Veterans and others know that now is the time to act. People who want such terrific boosts given to the VA should write to their representative and senator telling them how much we as taxpayers want the VA supported to ensure that quality care and services are available to all veterans in a timely manner.